First Visit to DLP Easter 2010 - need help

[spudwynk]

OK - I've done a bit of research and now I'm totally and utterly confused as to what to do. Any advice would be appreciated.

Is it worth the extra to stay in a Disney Hotel? What are the benefits other than the early entry to parks (and could an almost 4yr old and a 6 yr old cope with such a long day?)

I've seen ppl say that it's not worth driving (from NE England) as the ferry/tunnel/petrol works out about the same as flying with a budget airline.

Paris International with Eurocamp looks cheap - but how far is it from DLP? And then I have to buy tickets separately.

Am I right that kids go free has now expired so I would have 4 of us to pay for?

Do you have to visit more than once to make an annual pass worthwhile? Or should this be considered too?

If only someone could tell me what to book life would be so simple

Cheers
Jo

 

[A Small World]

Hi and welcome

We drive from NW - Lancashire - and find it worth it as its easier tp pack snacks/drinks etc into the car as well as spare shoes etc. We use the tunnel and only pay per car rather than per person so its cheaper - if you shop at Tesco you can use clubcard deals as well

Paris International campsite is quite a distance (and isnt a particularly nice site - I dont think theres a pool there is there) - you would have to either drive round the peripherique (mad Parisien ring road) or go into Paris by train and out again (I think its the same line though)
We were going to stay there a few yrs ago but changed our mind

If you want to stay with Eurocamp Berny Riviere is much nicer - we've spent a few Easters there - its just less than an hour from DLP by car and the site is lovely - a brilliant swimming pool

If you are staying off site and not intending visiting everyday you could get the cheapest annual pass - Francilien - but this cant be used 2nd and 3rd day after purchase so its no good if you want to go into the parks every day.There are blackout dates though so you would need to check these

If you are intending going to the parks everyday you are best to stay onsite or much closer otherwise you will get sick of travelling everyday

 

[Ms Poppins]

I think that kids under 7 still go free - check disneylandparis.co.uk for details.

I think that the kids will be less tired if you do stay on site. The hotels are close enough to pop back to in the middle of the day for a rest or swim. EMH will be invaluable to you are you kids are most likely to love Fantasyland. It's these rides, and some in Discoveryland that are open early. Peter Pan for example usually has queues of up to an hour, but in EMH its a walk on.

We would try to be at the gates for opening at around 8am, and after an hour or so, we would walk back to the hotel for a later breakfast.

My ds is 4, and we found that he coped fine, although we did take his buggy, which he never uses at home. You can also hire these at the park if need be.

As long as you accept that they will get tired, and need some rests, they will cope fine, and as I said, being within walking distance to your hotel (except DCR if you're driving) is fantastic.

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

when you say the children under 7 go free? do you mean that annual pass offer that was going, or the offer with a disney hotel?

the annual pass offer has expired, but the offer with disney hotels still tends to run, depends on dates though i think.

i am looking at staying somewhere like euro camp international as a abse when we go in spring.. as we have decided to get annual passports on out next trip in feb..
i think 4 days in parks works out about same price as an annual passport.
i think generally..it depends where you live with regards to driving, we are in cornwall, so getting cheap flight from bristol then staying onsite has always been the bect choice... but now as we are getting aps any trip we do next year will be a bit different.

we booked explorers cheap independantly. and will be buying annual passes for me partner nanny and 6 year old... 2 year old will be free. was cheaper for us to do this then do day tickets, as you also get added discounts etc.

 

[ejm80]

Hi

We have always stayed on site. Our children are 6, 3 and 7 months. They do get a bit tired but if you break the day up with snack stops, lunch, shows etc they manage. We usually go in December when it is freezing but this year we went in June and found them more tired than they normally are due to the heat. I have never stayed off site so I cant comment on that but I find it really easy when on site. Once you arrive at the hotel there is no more travelling with the children, the parks, hotels and the village are all in walking distance.

We always book the hotel and tickets direct with disney. Have a look at the site and play around with days, hotels etc to see what deals there are. We have just booked for December and got Under 7's free (so just paying for three of us) and 1 night and day free. I think there are some dates with under 12's free. I look at the site first for prices, then phone up to book, you pay 10% deposit and the rest 8 weeks before you go.

We book flights through easyjet from Liverpool, Newcastle or Glasgow depending which has the better flight times and prices.

We book private transfers before we go through Tio shuttle webite.

Sorry cant help with AP's.

Dont know if this will help, Just thought I would explain how we go about booking.

Emma

 

[jillrobinson]

We've always stayed onsite in a Disney hotel, for me it's all part of the holiday experience. It doesn't have to be the more expensive Disney hotels, there's nothing at all wrong with Santa Fe or Cheyenne, Cheyenne is my favourite of the 2, but apart from the theming there's little to choose between them.
Reasons for booking a Disney hotel - waking upto Goofy's alarm call, the chance of meeting a character or 2 on the way to breakfast, even the shuttle buses are all part of the fun.
and if you're worried about the kids not lasting the day, it's not a problem getting back to the hotel for a midday rest.

Are you confusing the kids under 7 go free with the kids under 12 go free, the under 12 offer only runs from Jan-March each year, as far as I'm aware the Under 7 offer is ongoing.

Cheapest way to book in my experience is the hotel through DLP direct, you can do it online via Quidco (cashback site) so you get some money back, but you have to pay for the holdiay in full at the time of booking. Over the telephone you just pay a deposit and the balance 60 days before your holiday date.

Book flights independently, last visit was with Flybe, through Airmiles so no cost at all, but currently looking at Easyjet for our next trip and flights from £50 each

Either use the VEA coach or book a private transfer from the airport to DLP.
Hope some of this helps you decide.

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

yes we got our flights for £24 each through easy jet

some deals to be had if you play around with dates

 

[DLPdaft]

Hi spudwynk,
Elaine, Jackie, Elaine and Reid welcome you to the DLP DIS board

We are a friendly bunch here so please join in on any other thread or if you have a number of questions then just start a new thread for each

If you have not had a look yet, DLP posting rules are here
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1477038,
DIS posting guidelines can be found here
http://www.wdwinfo.com/guidelines.htm

Its really up to you which way you travel to DLRP, everyone has their own reasons for their choices (convenience, price, etc). I would definitely agree that with a 4 and 6-year old, staying onsite and having access to EMH, will be a great advantage - some of their most favourite rides will be open, and certainly for the first hour from 8am to 9am, they can ride them over and over with little or no queues at all .

If you are looking at staying offsite, you would need to buy Dream annual passes for everyone, to get access to EMH.

 

[scald]

With children that age, I could not imagine staying off site. To be honest, after a long day at the park, sometimes even the short walk back to the hotel can feel like miles. I couldn't imaging having to traipse back to a campsite somewhere else.

The Disney hotels are not necessarily expensive. If you check around your dates, there is always something on offer. In fact I imagine if you hold off a while, there will be a specific offer for that time. Kids under 7 will be free as thats an ongoing offer. I have often priced up dates where the Disnay Hotels worked out cheaper than the associated ones. And remember, your breakfast is included.

We have flown and driven to DLP, but this year we took Eurostar from London direct to the gates. This has been our favourite, least hassle way to do it. Perhaps you could look into this option?

 

[jillrobinson]

yes we got our flights for £24 each through easy jet

some deals to be had if you play around with dates

It means we may be looking at a Halloween trip, but don't tell OH.

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

It means we may be looking at a Halloween trip, but don't tell OH.

think he might notice when you start packing the bags.. haha

 

[spudwynk]

Thanks for all your help everyone. It's made my mind up to book a hotel onsite and prob fly with EasyJet as I've already priced up the flights at £250 for 4 of us which is little more than the petrol would cost us.

Cheers
Jo

 

[jillrobinson]

Keep us posted on how the plans progress.

 

[MinnieMouse73]

Just to be different, we stay off site in a hotel (cheap!) in Bussy St George. It's about a 10 minutes drive, if that, from the car park. We just cannot justify the cost of a Disney hotel, when we can pay 40-45 Euros per night (admittedly it's a basic room, but it is fine for us as we're hardly there anyway - it's clean and the bed is comfortable, and that's all we need) - we take our own stuff for breakfast as well to cut down costs.

By saving money on the hotel we can stay for a week, we have also been 3 times this year - and all of us would rather do several holidays off site than one in a Disney hotel. We have stayed on site before in the Santa Fe (in the old days, when you could book a package with Tesco Deals), and by the time you've walked back or waited for the bus I don't actually think it's much longer (if at all) to go back to Bussy St George.

Of course this would only work (for us) if we're driving, I wouldn't fancy having to get a train back after a day in the parks, though people do.

 

[MinnieMouse73]

Sorry I missed the part where you said you'd decided to stay on site - just ignore me!